Under the impact of the El Nino phenomenon, since February 2016 8 out of 13 provinces in the Mekong Delta have announced a state of calamity. These provinces currently face the driest and most severe salination for the last 100 years with thousands of hectares of crops damaged, 10-12% of GDP lost and nearly 2 million people affected.
Source: Kenh14.vn / Trí Thức Trẻ. Photo by: Hữu Dương
The Mekong Delta in Vietnam is home to over 20% of the population and produces approximately 50% of the country’s rice and around 60% of its fish contributing to a combined 27% of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP). The Delta is also exposed to some of the worst levels of natural disasters in Vietnam and has the highest severity levels for flooding in Vietnam, rated as “very severe,” and “severe” for storms, saline intrusion, inundation, landslides, storm surges and fires. Increasing saltwater intrusion in the Delta—where four million people currently live in poverty—means that by 2030 more than 45% of the land will be exposed to extreme salinization and crop damage, severely affecting livelihoods.
HFH Vietnam aims to support community adaptation in the Mekong Delta to climate related threats through ongoing projects in Ten Giang and Long An, two of the disaster-stricken provinces. Since 2010, HFH Vietnam has worked in communities in Chau Thanh district, Long An province and Tien Giang province and served over 1,000 poor households through construction interventions. For example, in the past 5-6 past years, HFHV has supported construction of several rainwater systems constructed for the local people in coastal areas of Tien Giang and Long An Provinces. HFHV mobilizes resources (construction materials, labor and financing) to build or repair houses and water/sanitation facilities with economically marginalized households willing to partner and contribute toward the cost, typically through a microfinance mechanism. HFH Vietnam also trains communities on community-based -disaster management, disaster resilient housing techniques, and clean water and environmental sanitation.
